It's hard to imagine any coach devising a strategy that would limit the time James, the best player in the world, spends on the floor. But Spoelstra would rather have James at his very best than play him for 12 consecutive minutes — and that logic applies to everyone else on the roster as well.

"It was absolutely something that, as a team, we talked about beforehand," Spoelstra said. "We expected to play a 10-man rotation tonight even with guys out, and nobody has been playing 12 straight minutes."

The Heat were without regulars Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem and Ray Allen on Saturday, but that didn't stop Spoelstra from finding players to throw on the court when his starters needed to sit a spell. He gave Joel Anthony extra minutes and worked Roger Mason Jr. into a reserve role.

"Most of the guys in rotation," Spoelstra said, "including Dwyane (Wade), including Chris (Bosh), and then everybody else in the rotation, is playing six, seven-minute bursts."

James played 32 minutes on Saturday, and he saw more time than the other members of Miami's "Big Three," in part because Bosh was saddled with foul trouble and Wade left early because of knee soreness.

Once James' minutes are analyzed, though, it's obvious that there was a concerted effort to limit his time played. Before Saturday, James had played fewer than 35 minutes only once, in a 118-95 blowout win over the Milwaukee Bucks in which he posted 30 minutes.

Playing James heavy minutes has not been detrimental to the team, which seems like one of the more obvious statements. Still, because Spoelstra has emphasized shortened minutes, it's a point worth making.

The Heat have lost three games by a total of six points, and haven't faced major issues to this point. Miami did lose the game in which James totaled his highest minutes total of the season. He played 42 in a 101-100 loss to the Brooklyn Nets, but that was an anomaly in a rivalry game.

Saturday was a special case because the Miami bench played itself into extended minutes. The group that closed the game, led by Michael Beasley and Norris Cole, kept the Bobcats at bay as the Heat stars rested on the second night of a back-to-back. Cole, who started in place of Chalmers, logged 36 minutes and Beasley went for 23.

"I had intentions of going back in but once they got going I just told (Spoelstra) to let them keep going," James said of the bench's production. "They had a great rhythm and it was great to see."

If James had it his way, he'd be on the floor. He understands that strategic substitutions are necessary, however.

"If I feel good and I'm rolling, I never like coming out," James said. "But I understand, when I feel like at a point I might hurt the team, then I should come out."